Composer: William Schuman, Charles Ives, Peter Mennin
Orchestra: Eastman-Rochester Orchestra
Conductor: Howard Hanson
Audio CD
Number of Discs: 1
Format: APE (image+cue)
Label: Mercury
Size: 383 MB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes
01. Three Places In New England: The ‘St. Gaudens’ In Boston Common (Col. Shaw And His Colored Regiment)
02. Three Places In New England: Putnam’s Camp, Redding, Connecticut
03. Three Places In New England: From The Housatonic At Stockbridge
04. Symphony No 3, ‘The Camp Meeting’: 1. ‘Old Folks Gatherin’ (Andante maestoso)
05. Symphony No 3, ‘The Camp Meeting’: 2. ‘Children’s Day’ (Allegro moderato)
06. Symphony No 3, ‘The Camp Meeting’: 3. ‘Communion’ (Largo)
07. New England Triptych (Three Pieces For Orchestra After William Billings): 1. Be Glad Then, America
08. New England Triptych (Three Pieces For Orchestra After William Billings): 2. When Jesus Wept
09. New England Triptych (Three Pieces For Orchestra After William Billings): 3. Chester
10. Symphony No. 5: 1. Con sdegno
11. Symphony No. 5: 2. Canto
12. Symphony No. 5: 3. Allegro tempetuoso
A classic classical album
The Third is the most charming of Charles Ives’ four “official” symphonies; one imagines the French would have been able to perform it – & loved it – during the 1920’s. Subsequent research & a better sense of Ives’ “sound” cannot be altogether discounted when listening to Hanson’s committed 1959 performance; James Sinclair with the Northern Sinfonia on Naxos has a lighter & more deft touch that I believe is closer to what Ives heard in his head. But the inclusion of “Three Places,” William Schuman’s “New England Triptych,” & the rugged Symphony no. 5 by the somewhat neglected Peter Mennin make this a classic classical album. Mercury’s close mic “Living Presence” recording is better heard on speakers than through earphones, & was a sonic wonder of the era.